1. Technical Field
The present disclosure pertains to boring holes through an object and, more particularly, to a tool for guiding a drill from opposing sides of an object to form either two elongate cavities in the object that are aligned along a central longitudinal axis or a single longitudinal bore completely through the object.
2. Description of the Related Art
The present disclosure is used in the context of attaching known caps to the tops of posts, such as pilings, fence posts, and the like. In order to attach a cap to the top of a post, at least one hole must be drilled entirely through the post or two longitudinally aligned holes from opposing sides of the post. A fastener then secures the cap to the piling or in the optional case, two fasteners, one on each side, are used. Ideally, a single fastener passing through the post is preferred.
Referring initially to FIG. 1, shown therein is a post 10 having a cap 12 attached thereto. The cap 12 is of a conventional shape and includes a U-shaped channel 14 formed of a bottom wall 16 and two upright sidewalls 18. A pair of straps 20 depending from the bottom wall 16. The straps 20 have a plurality of openings 22 formed therein for one or more fasteners 24 to pass therethrough and through the post 10 to affix the cap 12 to the post 10.
In order for a fastener, in this case a bolt 24, to pass through the post 10, a hole 26 must be drilled entirely through the post. In this case, the hole 26 is sized and shaped to receive the fastener 24 and passes completely through the post 10 from opposing sides of the post 10.
In applications where the post or piling has a diameter or thickness greater than the length of a drill bit used to form the hole 26, the hole must be drilled alternatingly from both sides of the post. When drilling such a hole by hand, a worker must drill from both sides of the post 10 in the hope that the two holes will intersect inside the piling. Not only that, in order for the bolt 24 to slide unimpeded through the hole 26, the two holes formed from opposite sides of the post 10 must lie along the same longitudinal axis. Thus, there is a need for a tool that can guide a drill or drill bit into the post 10 from opposing sides so that the drill bit forms two holes or openings that intersect along the same longitudinal axis to form a single hole or bore 26 that is straight, of a uniform diameter, and is perpendicular to a plane of the side or sides of the post 10.
Various approaches have been used for guiding drills. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,351,243 describes a combination drill guide and clamp in which a U-shaped holder has first and second clamp members threadably engaged with the ends to clamp two pieces of work together side by side for drilling a hole therethrough. The clamp members 5 and 6 have internal diameters of different sizes to guide a drill therethrough. This particular device has a limited range of adjustment because the U-shaped holder is fixed in its configuration. In addition, exchanging the clamp members requires disassembly of a bushing 5′ from the clamp member 5 and removal of both clamp members, which can be cumbersome and time-consuming.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,241,453 describes a multi-purpose jig that is designed to clamp to the side of a workpiece and guide a drill at a selected angle into the workpiece. This jig does not enable attachment to a post or piling for guiding a drill from both sides of the piling without removing the jig itself.
A boring jig for door locks is described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,338,277, which is designed for relatively thin doors in which a large opening is formed using a circular saw instead of a drill.
An adjustable drill template is illustrated in U.S. Pat. No. 4,257,166 having a flat rectangular plate with spaced drill guide holes therethrough that is attached to a single side of a workpiece for drilling hole positions, primarily for cabinet doors and drawers. This template would be unable to guide a drill through opposing sides of a piling and have the resulting openings formed along a single longitudinal axis without having to go through substantial measurements of the position of both plates on the post.
In U.S. Pat. No. 4,842,453, a guide apparatus for drilling oblique holes is provided to support a wood stock at an adjustable angle to a reference surface in a guide assembly for positioning a drill bit over the end of the wood stock and guiding the reciprocation of the drill bit to enable the drill bit to enter the surface of the wood stock adjacent the end obliquely and to pass out of the end to form a hole for receiving a screw. This apparatus is designed for workpieces that are smaller than the length of the drill bit. Hence, this apparatus would be ineffective with large pilings and posts.
A unit lock installation jig for doors is illustrated and described in U.S. Pat. No. 3,302,674. This jig fits over the end of the door to position two clamp members on opposing sides in alignment with each other to facilitate cutting operations for installations of latch and lock sets indoors. This design, similar to that of U.S. Pat. No. 3,338,277 described above, does not lend itself for use on large posts and pilings because of its limited range of adjustment. It is also designed for use with large circular saws instead of drill bits.